Door construction



Nov. 4 1924.

A. H. DODGE DOOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 17 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR W 7 4 Elm/ a BY Wm W ATTORNEYS 1,514,140 A. H. DODGE DOOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 17. 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 4 1924.

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I'll l INVENTOR MW 2% $9 BY ATTORN Y5 Qv 2X A. H. DODGE DOOR CONSTRUCTION 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Dec. 17 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 A'ITO A H DODGE DOOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 17 1923 Nov. 4 1924.

Nov. 4 1924.

A. H. DODGE DOOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 17. 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR Patent Nov. 4, 1924.

TED. STATES ARTHUR H. noixm, or NEW Yon, N. Y., ASSIGNOB 'ro THE .1. G. WILSON TION, or new YORK, N. Y., A coarom'rron or vmemm.

PATENT OFFICE.

oonrom- DOOR CONSTRUCTION.

Application filed December 17, 1923. Serial No. 681,178

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that L'Aarmm H. Donor, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, county of New York, State of ,1

a New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Door Constructions, of which the following is a clear, full, and exact' description.

This invention relates to door construction and particularl to strips for closing the space between t e lower edges of the doors of a foldingpartition and the floor. How- .ever soundproof the body of a door may be made, sound will pass to a considerable extent through the space between the lower edge of the door and the bottom of the door frame unless adequate provision is made to prevent it. Failure to make such provision isan especial drawback in the case of movable partitions used to subdivide temporarily a large room into small rooms, and may in some instances render-such partitions practically useless. Folding partitions should be easyto move from open to closed 2? position, and should not require special skill or attention inoperatiop. v

' The main object of this invention is to provide strips which maybe attached to the doors making up a foldin partition, which strips will automatically 0 ose the space between the bottoms of the doors and the floor when the partition is unfolded to close the door frame, but which will not interfere with free movement of the sections of the partition between open and closed position. Doors making up a folding partition should be free to slide until they are moved into their fully closed position; swinging doors should likewise be free to swing until they are closed. Another important object of the invention is to provide a sound in-' sulatin strip arranged to close automatically the space between the lower edge of. the door and the floor when the door is closed, .which may be applied to any type of folding or swinging door and 1s con 'structed to permitj'ree movement of the door until it is fully closed.

Another object is to provide door Sag? mechanism of the character above describ which will be simple an economical to construct and apply to the doors of a foldmg the doors being in fully closed partition and which will be entirely automatic in operation. o

Still another object is the provision of positively acting operating mechanism for door str ps requiring a mmimum expenditure of energy to operate, and constructed to save'wear on the parts sothat it may last as long in' use as. the other elements of the door ofvwhich' it forms a art. .5 v

One example of the inv ntion as applied to a folding partition is illustrated in the drawings, in which: U j

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a typical partition made u of three pairs of hinged doors provide with the improved strip, shown in fully closed position;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, but with the partition partially open;

Fig. 3 is 'a front elevation, withparts broken away, showing the strip mechanism applied to theleft-hand end door of the partition illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on the line, 7 4.4-ofFig.3; k

Figs. 5 and6 are vertical sections on the lines 5 5 and 6'6, respectively, of Fig. 3, showing the strip and its attachment'to the lower edge of the door;

Fig. 7 is a front elevation with parts broken away, of the strip applied to a partition door containing a shuttle door, as the door next the left-hand end in Fig. 1; 1

Fig. 8 isa horizontal section on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7 showing a preferred strip operating mechanism for shuttle doors, with the main door'and shuttle door both closed;

Fig. 9 is a view of the parts shown in Fig. 8 but with the main door .closed and the shuttle door open;

Fig. .10 is a view of the parts shown in Fig. 8 but with the main door open and the shuttle door shut;

Fi 11 is a view similar to Fig. 8 of a modi cation; j i

Fig. 12 is-a front blevation of a strip applied to an intermediate. pair of doors, such as thetwo middle doors shown in Fig. 1,

position and the strip operated;

Fig. 13 is a view of the parts shown in Fig. 12 but with the doors out of clwed position and the strip raised from the floor;

14 is a horizontal section onthe line 14-4-14 of Fig. 12;

. Fig. 15 is a horizontal section on the line 15-15 of Fig. 12;-

Fig. 16 is a View similar to Fig. 15 showing a modification;

Fig. 17 is a front elevation of a strip applied to the pivoted doors shown at the right Fig. 18 is a section on end of Fig. 1, the doors being closed and the strip operated,

the line -18-18 of Fig. 17 with the doors partly open;

I ig 19 is a "ertical cross section similar to Fig. 5 showing a modification;

Fig. 20 is a fragmentary horizontal section of a strip applied to a single swinging door with a stationary jamb;

Fig. 21 is a vertical section on the line 21-21 of Fig. 20;

Fig. 22 is a perspective of a detail shown in Figs. 20 and 21; and

Fig. 23 is a fragmentary horizontal section of .a modified construction for use'with a swinging door and a stationary jamb.

Figs. 3, 7 12and 17 when aligned from ,left to right, in the order named, show mechanism for operating'all the door strips of a partition such as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Partitions of the type shown-in Fig. 1 are made up of any number of pairs of doors needed to close the open doorway or frame, three such pairs 24, 2526, 2728, 29 being shown in the present instance. The alternate doors 24, 26 and 28 are connected as by the invisible hinges to the adjacent doors 25,

27 or 29, as the case maybe, to form a folding section or unit of the partition. When the doorway is open, the units are all folded compactly together next --to the fixed door jamb 31, shown at-the right in Figs. 1, 2*and 17. ,Toclose the doorway, the first unit is unfoldedv and straightened out to the posi-' tion illustrated by doors 24, 25 in Fig. 2, the remaining units are then unfolded and caused to slide across the open frame until when the last unit has been partially Lunfolded the door-way will be substantially closed, the leading edge of the first door 24 being in light contact with the jamb .32 and the upright edges of each unit being closed to or in contact with the edges of the adjacent unitsf The last door 29 of the unit' next to the jamb 31, against which the doors told when open, is pivoted on the pins 33, so; that doors 28 and 29 in being straightened out act as a toggle lever to force all the other doors tightly together and against the jamb 32. This jamb 32 is yieldingly mounted on. springs 34 to compensate for any irregularities in-the width of the doors caused by faulty construction,'changes in temperature, etc.

The doors selected to illustrate the invention are supported on castors 35 and are guided in their movement by plates or pins 36 at the lower outside corners of each unit, which engage a' ooved track 37 set in flush with the floor. uitable anti-friction guides may be provided at the upper corners of the door unitsto guide the doors in. an overhead track, not shown. -Whether the doors are supported as describedor are hung from above, and whether the partition is of the folding,.accordion, 'or parallel track type,

the edges of the doors will close tightly together when'the partition is in position to close the door frame, so that the present invention which provides .a door strip operable in response to relative movement of the door edges is applicable to any type of -folding partition; In the construction se-' lected for illustration, the first section of the partition, consisting of doors 24, 25 has been shown provided .with a wicket or shuttle door 38 hinged to the 'jamb section 39 of door 25 to swing towards and from :jamb section 40 and thus permit passage through the partition when in closed position shown in Fig. 1. It will become apparent, however, that any desired number of shuttle doors may be provided and located in any convenient sections of the partition awithout changing the operation of the strip. The casters 35 and lide plates or pins 36 are mounted in suita ly cut awayportions I at the opposite lower corners of the partition units, and are enclosed by the cover plates which thave been designated as A, B

only the ably the sound retarding strip is assembled as a unit in the sheet metal housing 41 which is formed as a deep channel (Fig. 5) having a back wall 42 and a front wall 43. The housing is secured to the face of the door near its lower edge by a number of screws 44.

The base of the strip proper is a much smaller channel 45, the downturned edges of which grip and retain the strip 46 (Fig. 6). The stripmay be made of rubber,

leather, or any suitable textile fabric, and

is formed where it contacts with the frame or floor 47 into a bead 48 which is stuffed with suitable .fibre 49, such as rope yarn. The base 45 is mounted for vertical movement relative to the housing'and thus towards and away from the floor by pins 50 bent-over end 60 of the actuating which pass through vertical Slots 51 an d may be riveted to the back wall 42 of the housing. To actuate the strip in its vertical movement, there is provided a bar 52 extending parallel to the base 45 of the door strip and secured for longitudinal, horizontal movement to the rear wall 42 of the housing. This ma be conveniently accomplished by slottlng the actuating bar, as at 53, and riveting ide pins 54 which ex,- tend through the s ots' into the rear wall 42. The actuating member and the base are connected b suitable linkage, such as the stripsproximately-right angles towards the door to form the abutments 60.

As the first section of the partition is unfolded to its straight position and slides.

along the track 37 to itsclosed position, obviously. the strip will be out of contact with the frame so as to permit free movementof the door onits castors 35 or other supports. When the leading edge of door 24 reaches yielding jamb 32, the section made up of doors 24 and 25 is in its fully closed position and the door strlp may be operated at this time, if desired. Tooperate the door stri when the-door is forced a ainst the jam there is provided a su' a le abut ment 61 which may besecured the jamb, by the screws 62, in position to strikebthe ar. When the door is forcedtiglitly against the jamb,'the pressure of abutment 61 on the actuating bar 52 forces it to the ri ht and thereby moves the upper ends of t e links 55 to the right, the base 45 of the door strip being held against longitudinal movement by the guide pins 50 must therefore travel downward until its bead 48 is pressed: tightly against the floor or other. bottom member of the doorvframeQThe yielding flexible nature of the strip insures a-tight connection at all points between the door strip and the floor, re rdless ofmequah-ty in the distance from t e lower edge of the door to the floor. In order to allow for accidental irregularities in the length of the abutment members, the operating links are designed to occupy very nearlya vertical position when the strip is pressed against the floor, in which position the left-hand ends of the horizontal'slots 53 in the acuating member have not yet reached the of the actuating guide pins, 54. If the abutment 61 should be a little too long, the only result would be to force the upperfends of the links a little beyond their normal' vertical operated position, but'owing to the flexibility of the strip and the fact that considerable horizontal movement of-the actuating bar produces but a very small vertical movement of the strip base when the links are nearly vertical, it will be obvious that the strip would make a good contact with the floor in spite of such variation in the length of the abutment. Under certain" circumstances it may bedesirable to allow'the left-hand end of the actuating bar to project beyond the edge of the housing when in its normal position, in which case the abutment may be either shorter than shown in Figs. 3 and 4,

or it may be flush with the remaining surface of the yieldingjamb, the amount which the abutment projects from the surface against which the vertical edge of the door contacts being governed by the extent to which the actuatin bar normally projects from the housing. it is considered most desirable, however, to have the moving parts completely contained within the housing and to permit the stationary abutment to project the required distance to operate the door strip. r

The door strip attached to the jamb portion 40 of door 25 is substantially identical lower edge of door 24, and will be operated simultaneously with the strip on door 24 by the pressure of the right-hand end bar 52 against the lefthand end of the similar bar which operates the strip on jamb section40. The projection of stri'p 52 on door 24 into jamb 40 can only takeplace whenthe doors are in their straight and full closed position, so there is no'danger'of reaking any of the parts during the foldingmovement of the oors which can only occur when the doors are at the extreme right-hand end of the frame in tion tobe folded together; If only stan rd solid doors were used in making up the partition, the strip on each door in construction with that attached to the lit) in connection with door 25, a somewhat different construction is necessary.

when the partition section containing the shuttle door is reached the; limit of travel relative to the frame, and the shuttle door is closed relative to the 'amb sections of the partition door of whic .it 'forms a part, the door strip on'the shuttle door must be in its operated position in engagement with the floor. The shuttle door strip must be immediately raised from the floor whenever the shuttle door is swung on its hinges, and the closing of thdshuttle door must not operate its door strip unless the entire section is in its closed position, since otherwise the shuttle door strip would prevent sliding movement of the partition section con-v taining it unless the'shuttle door were slightly open. I

This invention satisfactorily meets these operating requirements by the construction shown in Figs. 7, 8, 9 and 10. The shuttle door 38 is provided .with a do 1' strip and actuating mechanism substantia 1y the'same as that described in connection with door 24, with the exception that the. left-handtrated as a spring secured at one endto the edge of the shuttle door by the screws 64; It will be obvious, however, that a hinge member might be substituted for the spring member, if desired. The right-hand end of actuating bar 52 of jamb section40 carries a bracket in which there is 'journalled for rotation about a vertical axis a roller 66. When the partition section is in its fully closed position and the shuttle door 38 is closed, the actuating bar 52 on jamb section 40 will have been moved to the right so as to press spring member 63 agai st the actuating bar on the shuttle door an ,thus operate the door strip on said shuttle door. If the door is then swu'n to the position shown in Fig 9,roller 66 rides off the yielding strip 63 so that "spring 57 may move the actuating strip 52 to the left to lift'the strip45 and permit free swinging movement of' the shuttle door. Conversely, closing movement of the shuttle door icauses roller 66 to compress the member 63 against the edge of the door and again operate the shuttle door strip. In Fig. 10 the parts are shown in the positions occupied during the opening or closin of the partition as a whole. Owing to the fact that the left-hand door has not been moved up tightly against the yielding jamb, the actuating bar 52 and its roller 66 occupy their normal position. in which the roller is out of the path of movement of the yielding strip 63 so that door will remain in its normal position raised from the floors Y An alternative construction is shown in Fi 11, in which the bar 52 of section 40 is ent in the triangular shape indicated, so

' as to provide-the sloping face '67 to serve as an abutment for the end of bar- 52 on the shuttle door. the bar 52 and the abutment 67, there is preferably provided a small roller 68 which may be rotatably secured to the end of bar Tolessen friction between 52 by bending said .end to form an eye to 9 receive the splndle carrying roller 68. The operating characteristics of this construction arev exactly the same as that employing the larger roller and yielding strip. In either case, the jamb section 40 prefer-ably 70 has an extension 69 projecting somewhat beyond the dividing line between the shuttle door and the j'amlg, so as to protect the roller 66 or end 67 of the operating rod when the shuttle door is open. The rear wall 42 of the housing channel is slotted at 70 to allow for the passage of: the bent end of the actuating bar. i

The jamb section39 towhich the shuttle door is hinged, also carries its own section so of door strip, but since the operation ofthe strip for this section should be independent.- of the open or closed position of the shuttle door, the strip is preferably operated in response to pressure from the next succeeding 3 door 26 of the partition rather than. from the preceding door which is the usual case. Thimjamlrsection 39 has the strip'member 45, actuator 52, and spring 57, as in the, previously described construction, but the spring 57 extends inthe opposite direction so as normally to project bar 52 to the right somewhat beyond the right-hand edge of the jamb. An' angle bracket 71 secured to the leading edgeof door 26 projects slightly in advance of said edge, so that-as the door I comes into contact with door 25, braclget 71 abuts the end 60 of the actuating bar 52 of jamb section 39, thereby forcing it to theleft and'operafting the links 55 to lower the strip against the floor, into the position shown in Figs. 7, 12 and 15. As in th case of all the other abutments which operate the door strips, the bracket 71 might be flush with the edge of door 26, in which case the actuator on jamb 39 would not need to project beyond the edge of the jamb. In other words, any relative position of the end of K the bar and the bracket which provides for suflicient longitudinal movement of the ac- 'tuating bar tomove the door strip may be even though the shuttle door. 38 s closed. against its jamb 40,-the strip on the shuttle that secured to the yielding amb 32, which will engage the strip-actuat1ng bar 52. on the next door. An abutment, such as thebracket 72 shown in Figs. 12 and 15, may be secured to the edge of the preceding door and the end 73 of bar 52 may be made somewhat 6 longer than in the usual construction so as nel-shaped bracket 72 being illustrated in.

Fig. 16 to perform the same function. V The relative position of the ends 60' of the actuatingbars 52 at one of the hinged joints,

"for example, betwen. doors 26 and 27 is shown in Fig. 14, in full lines to indicate a the strip-down position and in dot-dash lines showing the normal position when the ,strip is up from the floor. The last section.

of a partition made up) of the pivoted door 29 andthe door 28 fitted thereto, also have .door strips of the same construction as those described, the sole diiference being that instead of strips for thetwo doors bein operated, either from a preceding or a ol16wing unit of the partition, each of the actuating bars serves as the 0 rating. abutment for the other one, the en s 74, being curved as shown in 18. The reason for this operating arrangement is that the doorsare in their fully closed position as soon as'they have been straightened out. w A sliding movement cannot, therefore, be used to operate the door strips. As the doors are pushed from their folded position, shownin Fig. 2,

' the toe portions of. the bar ends 74 interengage and start to push apart the operating bars 52, but the curvature of the portions 74 is so arranged that the door strips willjnot-be brought into firm contact with the floor until the doors are snapped into their fullystraightened out position;

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that as the various partition sections are straightened out and moved across the frame to close the partition, no operation ofthe door strips will take place until the various sections are forced tightly together, since the various abutme'nts will merely rest lightly against the respective ends of the actuating bars until the pressure between the doors is suificient to overcome the force of springs 57, tending to hold the apparatus in itsnoamal position. The pivoted doors 28, 22 in being straightened out, act as a to la lever to force all the preceding sections bgether and against the spring jamb 32, so that under normal'operating conditions all the door strips are moved into their closed position simultaneously as the pivoted doors are straightened out. It will be obvious that as many intermediate sections made up of doors hinged together identical ith. the 1001826,271118 be'inte '2 I first unitand t piv A core as are remred to fu ly close the d r frame, how

. bet een the ifi hoyvg in 1 "ever large; also the shuttle door sections may be placed in any relative position desired, the only difference being that the edge of the door following after a, shuttle 'door section should. be equipped with a bracket v71 to operate the hinge carrying spring jamb of the shuttle door section. Where the intermediate door 27 is adjacent a door; 28, forming part of the pivoted door unit, the abutment 61 shown at the right of Fig. 12 is unnecessary and should be omitted, since the pivoted doors do not depend on adjacent doors for the operation of their strip mechanism.

The actuating member 52 may be made of othershapes than the flat strip previously described. For example, in Fig. 19 the actuating member 52' is channel shaped, the open side being turned towards the rear wall 42 ofthe holising and the links 55 being pivotedto the web portion of the channel by the pins- 56'. In this construction the springs 57 may be contained within the channel, one end being passed through two small holes in the upper or lower flange portion of the channel 52', while'the other end is fastened to a x I 42 of the housing. The screws 44 which hold the housing in position atthe low edge of the door need not pass above the actuating member 52 or 52', but may, if depin 59' fixed in the rear wall sired, be seated in apertures75 in the rear T wall 42 of the housing between the actuatmg member and the base portion 45 of the door strip, registering apertures 7.6 being provided in the front wall 43 ofthe housing to permit insertion and tightening up of the screws when they are so located. This arrangement OflthO securing screws permitsa.

somewhat narrower housin to be used, and

thus makes the construction slightly more compact.

The inventionhas been'thus far described as applied to a plurality of doors making up as a whole a folding partitlon, but in "Figs. 20, 21 and 22 "nalled for vertical rotation in a bracket 78 which is permanently secured to the stationary jamb'79 at the freeedge of the swinging door 80, the hingedgedge of which is not illustrated. The construction ofthe d'oor strip is identical with that shown on the shuttle door 38, but the yielding member 81 has the box-like housing 82 to'protect the endof actuating ban 52 and prevent dirt from entering the end of the door strip housing. -When the door is swung open, the

. actuating'member 52 is moved to the left by v its 57, not shown, so as to move the I y el ing member 81 to the dottedrlitfig I strip off the floor and permitting free swinging of the door. As the door is swung shut,

roller 7 7 presses'member 81 against the end or door sill as the 52 carries a roller 87 which rides into con- ,tact with the concavely curved face of abut-j anent 83 as the door swings shut, thusmoving the bar 52 to the right and operating the door strip.

. shown that there is no rubbing to wear'out the parts as has been the case with certain door strips heretofore -known. Either the strips are operated by a straight thrust of an' abutment against a longitudinally movable actuating bar, or as in the case of the swinging doors, the actuating bars are moved in the'direction of their length by means of some type of roller.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular construction of the illustrated embodiment of the invention but that the inventionmay be embodied in other forms within the scope of the 7 claims.

What'I claim as new is: r

1. A folding partition. :comprising a frame, a series of doors foldable in the frame into and out of the plane of the frame, certain of which doors are also mounted to slide in the frame in the plane ,thereof, a strip mounted on the lower edge ofeach door and movable to close the space between the said edge and frame, means for maintaining said strips out of contact withvthe frame during folding and sliding 'movement of the doors, and automatic means forjoperating the strips to close the spaces-between the several doors and the frame when the doors are closed;

-2. folding partition comprising a .iframe a; series of doors foldable in the frame into and out of the plane of the 7 frame, certain of which doorsare also fmountedto slide in the frame in the plane thereof, a strip mounted on the lower edge of ea'chfdoor andmovable to close the'space between, the said edge and frame, means for maintaining said strips out of contact with the frame during folding andsliding movement of the doors,' and operating meansfcarried by the frame and the sev- .bral doors" for operating said strips simultaneouslyito cl said space when all -of' the doors are gien'the'ir final closing movement to close. the partition. 3."A folding partition comprising a It isto be noted in all the constructions frame, a series of doors foldable in the forllmaintaining said'strips out of contact with the frame during folding and sliding movement of the doors, and operating means carried by the frame and the several doors for operating said strips simultaneouslyito close said space during the final operation in closing the partition.

. 4. A folding partition comprising a name, a series of door sections, certain of which are slidable in the frame in the plane thereof, the sections being made up of at least two doors hinged together at their meeting edges and mountedv for folding movement with relation to the frame, a

'strip mounted on the lower edge of each door and movable thereon to close the space between the said edge of the door and the a I frame, means for maintainingsaid'strips in position out of contact with the frame during folding movement of the doors and during sliding movement of the slidable sections, and means for operating simultaneously the door strips for all of the doors of the partition during the final closing of the partition. v

5. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of door sections, certain "of which are slidable in the frame in the plane there- I of, the sections being made up of at least two doors hinged together at their meeting edges and mounted for folding movement with relation to the frame, a strip mounted on the lower edge of each door and movable thereon to close the space, between the said. edge of the door and the frame, means forinaintaining said strips in position out of contact with the frame during folding movement of the doors and during sliding movement of the slidable sections, means on the frame for operating a strip on one of the end doors of the partition, and means on a door for operating the strip on an adjacent door."

6. A folding, partition comprising a frame, a series of doorsections, certain of which are slidable in the 'frame in the plane thereof, the sections being made up of at least two doors hinged together, at their meeting edges and mounted for folding movement with relation to theframe;v

a strip mounted on the lower edge of each door and ,movable thereon to close the space between the said edge of the door and the frame, means for maintaining said strips in position out of contact with the frame during folding movement, ofthe doors andfdnring sliding movement of the slidable sections, and means having a toggle action for operating simultaneously the strips on a series of adjacent doors.-

" strips.

8..][n door construction, a frame, a pair of doors having hinged meeting edges, one of the doors being pivoted to swing in the frame ,about another edge, strips carried at the lower edges of said doors to close the 'space between said edges and the frame,

and having horizontally slidable members to move the stripsto close the openings when the doors are relatively in the same plane within the frame.

9. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of doors: foldable in the frame into and out bf the plane of the frame,v certain of which doors are mounted to slide in the frame in the plahe of the frame, and a pair- 0f which doors in unfolding to close the partition have a tog le spaces-between tlfe same and'the frame,

action, astrip mounted on the lower e ge of each door to close the space between said edge and the frame, means for normally maintaining said strips in position out of contact with the frame, and nieansoperated by the said toggle action of a Pair of the doors for simultaneously operating all of the strips for the several doors to close the 10. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of doors foldable in the frame into and out of the plane of the frame, certain of which doors are also mounted to slide in the frame in the plane thereof, a strip mounted-on the lower edge of each door and movable to close the spacebetween'the said edge and frame, means for maintaining said strips out of contact with the frame during folding and sliding move- .ment of the doors, and means on each door for operating the strip on an adjacent door 'f asthe doors are moved into positions, to close the partition.

11., A, folding partition comprising a frame, a series of doors foldable in the frame intoand out of the plane of the frame, certain of which doors are also TllOlllltBdglO'SlldG in the frame in the plane thereof, a strip mounted on the lower edge of each door and movable to close the space "between the said edge and frame, means for maintaining said strips out of contact with theframe during sliding and folding movement of the doors, means on one of the end doors of 1 the partition for actuating the strip rm said door,;jmeans on the frame foi operating said actuating means, and actua" ating means for the strips on other doors 'operated'from the actuating means-on the end door. i

, 12 A folding partition comprising a frame, doors hinged together at their meet- ;ing edges and foldable with relation to the frame, a strip mounted on each of the doors to close the space between the doors and frame, means fdr maintaining the strips in position out of contact with the frame dur mg folding movement of the doors, and

.means on each door for actuating the strip for said door arranged to be operated by the actuating means on an adjacent door.

13. In door construction, a frame, a sliding door therein comprising vertical jamb sections and a shuttle door section hinged I to one of said jamb'sections, strips movable to close the space between the lower edges of the sections and the frame, means on each section for actuating its own stri the actuating means on one of the jam sec-- tions cooperating when'in operated position with the actuating means on the shuttle door when closing to operate the shuttle door strip, but said shuttle door strip actuating means being unaffected ,by said jamb strip actuating means when the latter actuating member approximately coextensive with one jamb and adapted upon longitudinal movement to close the sti'ip' on said jamb section, a horizontally movable actuating member on the door section adapted upon longitudinal movement to close the strip on said door section, said jamb strip actuating member when operated serving as an abutment to move the door stripactuatmg member when the door is \closed against the amb, and means for moving said jamb strip actuatingmembef at the end of travel of the slidingdoor.

15. A folding partition P comprising a frame, doors hinged togethely at their meeting edges and. fo dable with relation to the frame, a strip mounted on each door to close the space between the door and the frame,

means for maintaining said .StIlPfijIl posltion out of contact ,witli the'lfrartiefdi fifigr rzo;

movenibnt of the doors, means on a .1 001: for actuating the strip, for said 16. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of door sections, certain of door andmovable thereon to close the space r means for ably mounted on one of the main doors,

between the said edge of the'doorand the frame, means for maintaining said strips in position out of contact with thc frame during folding movement of the doors and during sliding movement of the sections, and operating simultaneously the door strips for all of the doors ofthe par tition during the final closing of the partition, the actuating means on the doors of each section being located wholly within the margins of said sections.

17. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of doorsfoldable in the frame into and out of the' plane of the frame, certain of which doors are mounted to slide in the frame/in the plane thereof, a strip mounted on the lower edge of each door to close the space between said ed e and the frame, means for maintaining said strips out of contact with the frame during sliding and folding movement of the' doors, and means for simultaneously moving all the strips for the several doors of the partition to closed positions in response to clos ing of all of the doors.

18. A folding partition vcomprising a frame, a series of doors foldable in the frame into and out "of the plane of the frameycertain of which doors are mounted to slide in the frame in the plane thereof, a

vertically movable strip movably mounted,

on each door to close the space between the lower edge of the door andthe frame, a

member -guided for horizontal movement to actuate each strip to close the same, and means acting on said members to hold the strips in elevated position during folding and sliding movement of the doors, theactuating members for certain of the doors being arranged to be operated by the actuating members of adjacent doors.

v 19. A folding partition comprising a series of movable main doors, a shuttle d'oor, means for closing the space between the doors and frame comprising a strip mounted on the shuttle. door, means formoving said strip to close the space between the shuttle door and the frame when the main door and the shuttledoor'are closed,

and for moving the strip out of engagement with the frame when the shuttle door is opened.

20. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of main doors movably mounted in the frame, a shuttle (lo or movmeans forclosing the space between the doors and the frame comprising a strip mounted on the shuttle door, means for maintaining the strip out of contact with the frame when either the main doors or the shuttle door are open, and means for actuating the strip to close the same when both main doors and the shuttle door are closed. 21. A folding partition comprising a frame, a series of main doors movably mounted in the frame, a shuttle door mounted on one of the main doors, means for closing the space between the doors and the frame comprising a strip mounted on the shuttle door, and means for actuating the strip to move the same into engagement with the frame when the main door is closed and to move the same out of engagement with the frame when the main door is open. 22. A folding partition comprising a frame, a main door movably mounted in the frame and having jamb, sections, a shuttle door mounted on the main door and engaging said jamb sections, strips mounted orespectively on said jamb sections and on said shuttle door for closing the space between the same and the frame, and means for simultaneously actuating the strip on the shuttle door and the strips on the jamb sections when the main door is closed.

23. A folding partition comprising a frame, a main door movably mounted in the door mounted on the main door and engaging said ja-mb sections, strips mounted respectively on said jamb sections and on said shuttle door for closing the space between the same and the frame,strip actuating means on the jamb sections, and strip ranged to be operatedfrom the strip actu-v ating means on one of the jamb sections.

24. A folding} partition comprising a frame, a main door movably mounted 1n the frame having jamb sections, a shuttle door mounted on themain door and engaging said jamb sections, strips. mounted respectively on said jamb sections and on said shuttle door for closing the space between the same and the frame, and means for simultaneously moving the strip on the shuttle door and the strips on the ]amb sections lnto engagement with the frame when the mam frame and having jamb sections, a shuttle actuating means on the shuttle door ardoor is closed and for moving the strip on .the shuttle door out of engagement with the frame when the shuttle door is opened.

25. folding partition comprising a frame, a main door-movably mopnted 1n the frame having jamb sections, shuttle door mounted on the main door and engaging said jamb sections,' strips mounted respectively on said jamlo sections and on said shuttle door for closing the space between the same and the frame, strip actuating meanson the jamb sections, and strip actuating "means on the shuttle door arranged to be operated from the strip actuating means on oneof the jamb sections and ar to slide in the frame in the plane thereof, ranged tobe released by the latter actuating and means carried by the several doors ,to 1 means to allow the. shuttle door strip to be close the" openings between the; doors and moved out'of engagement with the frame the frame when one of the doorsis pressed 5 when the shuttle door is opened. against a side of the frame.

I 26. A folding partition comprising a Signed at New York city, New York, this frame, a series of doors fo1dable in the llthday of December, 1923. frame, certain of which" doors are mounted H. DODGE. 

